Roast turkey and Chivite Coleccion 125 reserva 2001

A bit of a departure with the turkey this Christmas - a magnum of Chivite Coleccion 125 from Navarra we unearthed in a cellar sort-out the other day. It's based on Tempranillo with a proportion of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon - I'm not sure what the percentages were that year - but was probably at the optimum moment for drinking - the fruit still bright but super-smooth and beautifully in balance.

I know I tend to recommend other options with turkey but this hit the spot perfectly coping with a rich spicy stuffing and bright, sharp cranberry sauce.

What made it work? Three main things, I think: the level of alcohol (13.5%) - not too alcoholic but powerful enough to take on the many different flavours on the plate, pure, intense but in no way cloying fruit and smooth, integrated tannins. And a magnum is always fun.

Stichelton (or Stilton) with Maury 1974 and Bristol Beer Factory Glenlivet-cask stout

Two matches for the price of one this week - both killer pairings at our Christmas Cheese School* last week.

The Maury 1974 ( £19.49 for 50cl. Averys), a fortified grenache made in a solera system like sherry was perhaps the more obvious pairing for the Stichelton, an unpasteurised version of Stilton. It had a similar warm, spicy berry character to a vintage port but at 17% was a little lighter. Delicious.

On the other hand the Glenlivet Cask Stout, one of a limited edition bottling of stouts brought out for Christmas by the Bristol Beer Factory, was just as good. A wickedly rich, dark smooth 10.7% imperial stout with a lovely touch of sweetness it was the perfect contrast to the creamy Stichelton.

I really like the idea of finishing Christmas dinner with a beer like this but if you think your nearest and dearest will rebel buy yourself a good imperial stout this week and treat yourself.

* Cheese School is joint enterprise I set up with local Bristol cheesemakers and mongers Todd and Jess Trethowan to offer cheese-focused events and all day courses for those who want to learn more about cheese.

Duck with figs and Kooyong Ferrous Pinot Noir

I know duck and Pinot is a bit of a no-brainer but this was such a great dish and such a stellar wine that it's worth revisiting. (Coupled with the fact that some of you may be having duck for Christmas.)

It was at the restaurant at the Port Phillip Estate on the Mornington Peninsula where I spent a day and a half last week. (Not at the restaurant, I hasten to add - in the region). It has the most amazing views over the vineyards to the Bass Strait.

The dish was a nicely rare duck breast served with confit duck made into a crisp duck cake, poached figs and a spiced duck glaze obviously designed to complement the Kooyong Pinots.

The wine we were drinking was the 2010 Kooyong Ferrous Pinot Noir, one of a number of single vineyard bottlings, a superbly structured yet opulent, cherry-fruited pinot that was perfectly pitched for the dish.

Kooyong and Port Phillip were nominated combined wineries of the year in James Halliday's 2012 wine guide.

Unfortunately the Ferrous seems to be out of stock currently in its main stockist Great Western Wine. I'm not surprised.

South-east Asian seafood dishes and salads and aged Eden Valley riesling

It was a tough call to find a match of the week this week - there have been so many but I'm picking three dishes from a meal I had at a brilliant south-east Asian (mainly Vietnamese) restaurant in Tanunda in the Barossa Valley called Ferment Asian which has just picked up an award for the best Asian restaurant in South Australia

We were taken there by Andrew Wigan the chief winemaker at Peter Lehmann who brought along the 2006 vintage of his own Wigan Eden Valley riesling, a deliciously crisp, racy wine with fantastic acidity. It went perfectly with a dish of sugar cane prawns (minced prawns served kebab-like on sugar cane skewers with a kumquat, salt and chilli dipping sauce, right), crisp Hanoi spring rolls with a salad of fresh herbs and a classic Vietnamese dipping sauce and a fresh, tangy Vietnamese-style beef salad.

I think a younger Eden or Clare Valley riesling would have worked too.